The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1887-10-19
MARY JAMES TRAVELS.
AFEW REMARKS ABOUT THE LENGTH
AND BREADTH OF BEDS.
A Rainy Day on the River Rhine-jokes
About Bingen. "Iair Bingen"-Baede-
ker. the Guide Book Mantle Great
Cathedral at Cologne.
snecial Correspondence. !

L
the provinces on the one night stand system.
| and have slept in more different beds, al
| longer range between beds than ever before
in the whole course of my natural existence
| and this suggests 10 me a iew remarks Oh
continental beds.
/ haven't seen bed big enrugh for two
since left London, an! whether they have
| such things on the continent or not ! don't
| know. Dickey and always get room with
two beds in IL and the bedsteads have invari-
ably been these little narrow ones which
| have to be showed up against the wall in
order 20 reduce one-half the chances OF roll
ing out on the floor during the night. In
| America We would call them lounges. and
they are of a STYLE of architecture prevalent
principally in remote districts where East
lake and Queen Anne have not yet made a
| pilgrimage Occasionally the plain wooden va
riety finds a substitute in the wrought iron
| STYLE. which admits Of little decoration. but
which also suggests the horrd suspicion that
| iron alone can withstand the rapacity Of GER
tain occupants Of beds which do not paw for
their lodging and which do not get up in TN,
morning and 20 down stairs to breakfast Up
! 10 date. however. We have not been troubled
in this way. and furthernose we have always
found everything clean and sweet and dry.
The similarity Of tho apparel of beds in
France, Italy. Switzerland and Germany j.
rather surprising Everywhere you find two
mattresses on springs a wedge shaped pillow
between them and two pillows on top, or
sometimes pillow with a bolster as round as
a saw log and nearly n hard The pillow
are square always. and sometimes they are 8
| heavy a. sand bags ln the matter of cover.
| a blanket or quilt a cOverlet and n young
feather bed are the usual articles. even
| in summer time We never have been able
10 sleep under the feather bed though.
and il is chucked away in the corner The
only departure from the above rule OF bed
dress was in one or two hotels, where the top
sheet was sewed up ilro bag, buttoned nj
the open end and a quilt or blanket placed in
side of it. The nights were quite cool when
we found this contraptiou, and it was not 80
unfavorable n il might otherwise have been
| couldn't find out why the bag sheet pre-
vailed | presume, though, 1t was 10 give the
guest choice. in ease she didn't like the side
next TO her In making the beds ! observed
one thing never saw in an American hotel.
| namely. that the chambermad always
tucked the cover well in at the foot II
there's anything | do dislike, it is 10 wake up
| in the middle OF the night with my feet IHt
ting out into the chilly air and all the cover
twisted around my neck, like hor-e blanket
around the feet Of a runaway nightmare
We came TO th, town from Mayence by
way Of the Rhine, d. ali well regulated
travellers do making the trip in eight hour
and rainstOi1n We left at . o'clock, and
the rain came about ten minutes earlier than
that and the only time % let up was about
/ noon. when We were down in the cabin at
dinner and didn't care how hard IL came
down have seen a good many different
kinds of pictures Of Rhine scenery, but this
was the first genuine water color that had
come under my notice and take great
pleasure in recommending il 10 universal CON
demnation. After leaving Mayence the show
doesn't really begin until we reach Bngen.
and when we did reach Bingen | think am
perfectly safe in saying that twenty-five ont
! of every twentyfOur persons on deck showed
their dripping umbrellas over 80 that the
water could trickle down their neighbOrs
backs and remarked something about Bin
gen Fair Bmgen ON the Rhine. II sounded
lttlemonOtonous. but felt that our country
men abroad were showing the untutorcd ua
tons tina; they knew the ancient classic
poetry indigenous to that soil. and said Just
what the Others did. "Bingen Fair Bngen
on the Rhine | viii say, however that there
is considerable license IN that poetry, and %
| Bngen was over extra fair, it was before She
was as old as she is now. After BIngen. a
few drilling, sloppy jokes began to float
| around among the umbrellas and their un-
dellnes Misery loves company, and the
bad weather couldn't possibly have been
lonesome with these jokes filling the air.
Under the circumstances of our trip dowL
the Rhine, hardly think / am competent to
"criticise the scenery. or compare II with
that of other rivers.
Dickcy says IA newspaper traveller that can't
"criticise scenery" should take a few lessons
from a landscape gardener We never heard
OF criticising scenery III last week, when a
Chicago woman told Us that her husbands
CRITICISMS Of the Alps and Swiss scenery
were perfectly magnificent, and 50 true 20
nature, too
| Our dny on the river was not conducive 20
the cultivation of the Muse, but Dickey shook
out this poem, and | put il in To FIJI up
with:
DER all the wide and winding Rhine
That day no ray OF sun did shine;
The castled crag ~ Dracheufels,
The queen Of all the river swells,
| Was yelled benea d a misty net
Whose every fold was dripping wet;
| The Iorclei whose song has slain
Her sailor lovers from the main,
Hid in her mountain, near its top
| Was waiting for the rain 10 stop
| Tall Sooneck's tower and Stahleck's walls,
The Steeger and the Butcher Thals,
Were covered with shrOud Of dew,
Which mortal eye conN not pierce through;
| The mighty Rheinfels. built 10 last,
Hid where the rain fell mighty fast;
And Sterrenbcrg aud Lebenstein.
The well known Brothers Of the Rhine,
Had told their legend, with a sigh,
And gone behind the clouds 10 dry;
The Mouse. the Cat, aud ROlands Arch
Had lost their last remaining starch,
Aud hung upyl the clifty Rhine
Like last weeks wash upon the line
Aud 80 from Mayence TO Cologne,
BY way Of Bngen, boat aud Bonn,
The castles, crags and winding stream
Were passed as IN a misty dream,
And all we know OF scenes SO fair